Hooked

by A. T Brennan

  “So, have you finally found a plus one?” her mom asked as she went to sit down. Jenna waited while the seamstress unzipped her dress.

  “Yeah, between the drive over here and putting on the dress I managed to snag a date.” She rolled her eyes.

  “There aren’t any single groomsmen. It won’t look right if you’re alone at the table. That’s why Ellie put aside a plus one for you.”

  “I told her I didn’t have one.”

  “Your friend Patty was going to set you up with her brother—what happened to that?”

  “Going on a date with your best friend’s brother…that’s a little weird. I told her to forget about it. She’s having a rough time right now. Anyway, I don’t want to put extra stress on her.”

  “What about that Tristan fellow you keep talking about?”

  “I’m pretty sure his boyfriend might feel left out if I invited him to a wedding.” She laughed at her mother’s shocked face, carefully stepping out of the dress as she did.

  “Oh I didn’t realize he was with someone,” she said carefully.

  “He is. Quite happily.”

  “Well, no matter. You have to find a plus one.”

  “The wedding is in two days. You seriously think I’ll be able to pull a boyfriend out of a hat overnight?” She pulled her shirt on, cursing as her hair was charged with static and suddenly exploded around her face.

  “You don’t need a boyfriend, just a plus one.”

  “Who am I supposed to get? I don’t know anyone here anymore.”

  “What about your friends?”

  “I asked a few, but they were busy. It’s a holiday weekend—everyone has plans.”

  “You’ve had the date for a year.”

  “A year ago I had a plus one.” She focused on smoothing down her hair, vainly trying to get it to lay flat again. “I had a plus one up until a month ago, then Ryan decided we needed some time apart while he went back to his ex, again.”

  “Maybe I can ask Danny to find one of his friends for you,” her mother said as she stood and slipped her purse over her shoulder. “He has to have at least a few friends who RSVP’d as singles.”

  “No way.” She shook her head and pulled on her sweater, and her hair exploded in a cloud of static again. “Oh for the love of—”

  “Jenna,” her mother warned.

  “Sorry.” She gave up trying to smooth out her hair and instead pulled an elastic band off her wrist and gathered it into a messy bun. “As I was saying. No way. The last time he tried to set me up with someone I ended up listening to his buddy talk about his hot ex-girlfriend and then puke on me after he got loaded. The wedding isn’t dry, so I’m not risking my awesome shoes in a set-up.” She grinned as she looked over at the shoes Ellie had picked out to go with the dresses.

  They were black leather and rather plain-looking, but they were a high-end designer and Ellie’s gift to the bridesmaids. The most expensive pair of shoes Jenna had ever bought had cost a little over one hundred dollars. These shoes were worth at least ten times that, and wearing them was like walking on a cloud. Even with a four-inch heel she felt as though she was wearing slippers. She absolutely loved them.

  “That was a long time ago—”

  “Two years, not that long.” She picked up her shoes and carefully slipped them into the protective shoe bags before putting them back in the box.

  “I hope you treat my future grandchildren with that much reverence.”

  “If they come out with this label, then you betcha.” She grinned and picked up her purse as she carefully cradled the shoebox. “Don’t ever tell Dan or Ellie I said this, but when I first met her I thought she was after Dan for his money. She just seemed so normal and so down-to-earth. I never would have guessed her family was loaded.”

  “She’s a sweet girl,” her mother agreed. “I didn’t realize either, not until Danny told us who her father is.”

  “I know. I actually looked him up online, and my eyes almost popped out of my head.” She laughed as they started to head out of the store. The seamstress had disappeared with her dress and hadn’t come back, so she assumed they were good to go. “Who would have thought Dan would land the perfect woman?”

  “Why wouldn’t he? He’s a wonderful man.”

  “Now, but he was kind of a dick until he hit his late twenties.” She grinned.

  “Jenna.”

  “It’s true. He was all about the partying and the status and doing as little as possible to get as much as he could. He had you and Dad bailing him out at every turn, and he didn’t seem to care.”

  “You only saw one side.” Her mother shook her head. “It might have looked that way, but he wasn’t as bad as you think. He made some bad choices and he had to deal with the consequences, but he’s grown up.”

  “Yeah, I guess.” She waited as her mother unlocked the car for her. “I’m happy he’s found someone, and I’m really happy she’s so great.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I was worried about her being a bitch. She’s going to be my sister-in-law, your daughter-in-law. She’ll be his wife and the mother of his kids. If she was a bitch, then we’d have to worry about losing him and never getting to see his kids.”

  “I think you might be projecting some of your own insecurities onto Ellie.” Her mother started the car as she looked over at her.

  “You honestly didn’t think about it?”

  “I thought about it, a lot,” her mother admitted. “Thankfully we don’t have anything to worry about.”

  “Yeah, after three years together I highly doubt she’ll turn into a super-bitch once the second ring is on. She’s didn’t even go bridezilla on us.”

  “It takes time to find the right person,” her mother said pointedly as she pulled onto the street. “You’ll find your person when the time is right.”

  “Yeah, sure I will.” She sighed and looked out the window.

  “Do you want me to talk to Dan?”

  “I’ll find someone.” She shook her head. “I still have a few people I can call. I’ll owe them big time, but I’m sure I can rustle up a date.”

  “Be sure to tell them about the seven-course meal and the open bar.” Her mom grinned at her.

  “And the fact that the bride’s parents are loaded and sprung for everything.” She laughed. “It’ll be a wedding to remember, that’s for sure.”

  * * * *

  Three hours later she was sitting in the spare room staring at her phone. Her parents had converted Dan’s room into an office and her room into a sewing room for her mom which doubled as a spare room. It was a little strange to be in the room she’d grown up in and having it look completely different. She was glad her parents had finally turned the space into something useful now that she was self-sufficient and had her life settled.

  She was at a loss. She’d called every guy she knew who was single to invite them to the wedding. Everyone either had plans or was away. Considering what short notice it was, and how it was a holiday weekend, she wasn’t surprised.

  She really, really didn’t want Dan to set her up with one of his friends. It wasn’t that she was worried he would be a drunken mess like the last blind date he’d set her up on. It was that she didn’t want to go on a date.

  She was still angry at Ryan for how he’d ended things, and she didn’t want to deal with the introductions, the strained conversation, and then the whole “will they, won’t they” hook-up scenario that was bound to happen since it was a wedding.

  It wasn’t that she didn’t want sex. She did, desperately. She just didn’t want a one-night stand with a stranger. Her life was settled. She had a good job, a nice place to live, friends, and she was enjoying herself. She wasn’t ready for another relationship, and she didn’t want to deal with a first date.

  Sighing, she picked up her tablet and put in her code. She would just play some games and think about it later. She was just about to tap on t
he new game she’d downloaded when she saw she had notifications on her social media. She tapped the icon and saw Ellie had tagged her in some of the bachelorette party pictures. She grinned as she looked through them. That had been a great night.

  Ellie’s sister had planned a really fun and different party. Instead of going out to a club she’d invited the bridal party out for an evening of pampering and getting their photos taken. They’d all gone to a lingerie store and picked out a fun and sexy outfit. Then they’d gone to a spa and had their nails, hair, and makeup done before heading over to a photography studio to get boudoir pictures taken.

  She’d been a little out of her element and a little self-conscious since she really only knew Ellie and had only met Ellie’s sister and the other bridesmaids a few times, but it had ended up being a really fun night.

  Those photos weren’t on the Internet; these were photos of them at the spa.

  Out of habit she started scrolling through her feed, just checking to see what was going on in the virtual lives of her friends and acquaintances when one status made her pause.

  Clay had shared a funny meme.

  About a year ago Clay had sent her a Friend request out of the blue. After he’d declined hers the night she’d picked up her car, right before she’d moved, she’d been sure he’d forgotten about her. Then his request had come out of nowhere, and she’d accepted it.

  She wasn’t proud, but she’d creeped his page to see what he’d been up to for the past few years. It looked as though he was still in town, still working as a mechanic, and he’d had a few girlfriends. She’d never contacted him or done anything when she saw his posts, and he’d never contacted her or done any sort of activity on her posts.

  As she stared at his name she clicked on his profile to check it out. It had been a while since she’d creeped his page.

  She scrolled through a few months of his posts. His profile really wasn’t all that active, and as far as she could tell he was still single.

  She still thought about that night before she’d moved. She’d had other partners since then and a few relationships, but that encounter stuck out in her mind. It was still the best sex she’d ever had. It wasn’t that her other partners hadn’t tried or that she’d been too timid to tell them what she wanted. It was more that the sex had been fine. She hadn’t had a lot of bad sex, just not a lot of really great sex, and no incredible sex.

  She bit her lip as she stared down at the page. He hadn’t put a picture of himself up in a long time so she wasn’t sure exactly what he looked like now, but she couldn’t imagine him changing that much in four years. Her finger hovered over the message button as her mind started whirring.

  Maybe she should contact him, tell him about the wedding, and see if he wanted to go with her. They might not have parted on the best terms, but if she spelled out exactly what she was looking for, then she wouldn’t hurt him again.

  Of course, messaging him two days before the wedding and asking him to be her date after having no contact with him for years was a little crazy. Telling him she was only looking for a one-night date could be hurtful by itself.

  She shook her head and pushed the button. They were adults now. She was looking for a date to a wedding, not a boyfriend. If he thought she was crazy, then he could just unfriend her. Other than creeping his page from time to time, she’d never used the site to connect with him, so it wasn’t as though she would be losing an actual friend.

  Taking a deep breath, she started to type out her message.

  Hi Clay,

  I know it’s been a long time, but I wanted to say hi. How are things? I’m in town for my brother’s wedding and was wondering if you’d like to go with me? It’s on Sunday at four p.m. I know it’s short notice and this is a holiday weekend so you probably have plans, but it might be nice to reconnect and see each other again.

  I hope you’re doing well,

  Jenna

  She read over the message a few times and then hit send. This was crazy and it was stupid, but it was done. Now all she had to do was wait.

  * * * *

  Clay stared at his phone in shock. He’d accidentally left it at home when he’d gone out that night with some of his friends. After a few too many drinks he wasn’t sure if he was reading the message correctly, and if it really was from Jenna.

  When he’d sent her a Friend request a year ago it had been right after a pretty rough breakup. He’d been in bad place, and he’d been drinking while looking at his news feed, getting angry and jealous at how everyone seemed to have someone except him. He’d seen her name come up on one of their old classmate’s posts, and he’d sent her a request on a whim.

  He’d never expected her to accept it, but he’d started looking through her site. She seemed to be doing better. She’d stayed in the city. It looked as though she had a better job, and she was seeing someone.

  Ever since then he’d seen her name and the occasional post pop up, but he’d made sure to never directly interact with her online. He’d checked her page out a few times in the past year, but he’d never contacted her.

  He closed the message and went to her page to see if she was still with that guy she’d been dating. If she was inviting him as a substitute for her boyfriend, then she could forget it.

  Her status was single.

  He walked over to his couch and sat down, still staring at his phone.

  She was single, and she wanted him to go with her to her brother’s wedding after four years of not speaking to each other.

  He didn’t know how to interpret that. Did she want to hook up? Did she really just want to hang out catch up as friends? Was this her wanting to start something now that she was single? Was he just the hometown backup for her to rebound with?

  He had no idea what kind of person she was now, and he had no idea what she was really asking him.

  He was feeling a little fuzzy and very confused, and he went back her message and hit Reply.

  Hi Jenna. Yeah, it’s been a while. I’d need more details but I’m around this weekend. Why don’t you call me and we can figure things out?

  He typed in his phone number and hit send before he could change his mind. He had no idea what she was thinking or what she might be wanting, but he was curious. And he was lonely.

  He’d been single for almost seven months. He’d had his share of dates between now and then, but nothing had panned out. He met a lot of women who liked his looks and his job, but he never attracted the type of woman he was looking for.

  He wanted a partner. He wanted someone who could compromise when he was being reasonable and could put him in his place when he was being a dick. He wanted someone he could talk with and lean on, and someone he connected with.

  He met a lot of beautiful women, but they all tended to be either uncompromising bitches or into mind games. He hated when women tested him. He absolutely hated the games and constantly having to feel as though he had to prove himself to them.

  It wasn’t that he thought a relationship should be effortless and easy. It was that he felt as though it shouldn’t feel like work. It should flow and evolve, and he should feel he was getting as much as he was giving, and he wasn’t finding that.

  Every relationship he’d ever been in had felt like work. He’d given a lot more than he’d gotten, and he’d always been the one to compromise. When he’d been with Jenna things had been different. It was true they’d never dated and had really only spent two days together on good terms, but those two days had really stuck with him.

  She’d been fun and friendly and open. She’d talked to him as an equal and the conversation had come so easily. He’d enjoyed every moment with her, minus their less than friendly parting, and the sex had been incredible.

  He’d loved how free she’d been with him. Even though he knew she’d been a little self-conscious, she’d let go, and he’d felt more than just a physical connection with her.

  He had no idea what any o
f that meant now, or even how much she’d changed, but he was curious.

  It might have been the beers, but if she was reaching out to him, why not reach back?

  * * * *

  She saw her phone blinking the moment she picked it up to check the time.

  She was so used to getting up at six in order to get ready and get to work on time she had trouble sleeping in on the weekends. She and her mother had sat around sipping wine as they’d chatted and caught up last night, and she’d gone to bed pretty late. Maybe she’d actually slept in for once.

  It was eight in the morning.

  “Ugh,” she groaned as she lay back. Her phone blinked again, and she rolled over so she could check it. She had a message.

  When she hadn’t heard from Clay last night she’d assumed he’d either ignored the message or thought she was crazy and had unfriended her. She’d even checked to make sure she could still see his profile page before going to bed, just to make sure she hadn’t been blocked.

  Logically she knew it was Friday night on a holiday weekend, and he’d probably been out or away, but her anxious and emotional side had spun about a dozen different scenarios that ranged from her message never reaching him to him thinking she was a crazy stalker and trying to find a way to cut her completely out of his life.

  He’d responded. She opened the message she looked at the time stamp on it. He’d replied to her at three in the morning.

  She read his message and let out a breath. He didn’t think she was crazy, and he’d even sent her his number. She programmed it into her contacts and then put the phone on the bedside table. It was way too early to call him, and she was hoping to catch a little more sleep before she got up for the day.

  Rolling over, she put her head under her pillow and tried to block out the sounds of her parents moving around downstairs. They were early risers too, and by the way they were banging around down there they didn’t seem to think she needed to sleep in any longer.

  * * * *

  It was three in the afternoon, and she couldn’t think of any more reasons why she shouldn’t call Clay. He would be awake by now, and she was guessing he didn’t have to work today if he’d messaged her so late. Enough time had passed she shouldn’t look too desperate, and not so much had passed he would feel slighted and turn her down.